


Only a Trainride Away

by hybridempress



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-30
Updated: 2015-12-30
Packaged: 2018-05-10 08:29:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5578540
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hybridempress/pseuds/hybridempress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alistair hasn't heard a word from Francis in four days, so he decides to take a trainride to France to find out if everything is alright</p>
            </blockquote>





	Only a Trainride Away

**Author's Note:**

  * For [aph-anko](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=aph-anko).



> Here it is!!! My part of the Tumbler ScotFra Secret Santa event!!! My giftee was aph-anko ahhhh I'm so sorry this took so long it's two days before the due date i'm weeping and i'm also really sorry if this isn't what you expected i would have made it so much longer if i had had more time but I really hope you enjoy this... a aaaah

Alistair sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he placed his cellphone back down on the table. He couldn’t go five minutes without checking it anymore, even though he knew that the message he was waiting for wouldn’t be there. He’d given up sending more messages by this point. All he could do was wait, but who knew for how long?

“Still no word?” Arthur asked, having just walked into the room and noticing how distraught his brother looked. 

Alistair shook his head. “Not a damn word,” he muttered.

Arthur sighed faintly, and pursed his lips into a thin line as he walked over to the couch and sat next to his brother. Alistair buried his face in his hands, and Arthur pat his back gently. He had been trying to give Alistair some reassurance for the better part of three days now, but nothing seemed to put Alistair’s mind at ease. 

“Please try to cheer up, Alistair. I can’t stand to see you this way,” Arthur said softly. 

“How can I? I’ve not heard a thing from him in four days. That’s not normal, that’s not-”

“Alistair, you need to calm down. There’s no point in getting worked up when we don’t even know if anything’s wrong. There’s nothing we can do about it right now. You just have to be patient,” Arthur said. 

“But it’s been _four days,_ Arthur. If nothing was wrong then he would have at least given me some warning,” Alistair protested. 

“Alistair, you’re in a long-distance relationship. People do not always have time to warn you when they will be gone for a while. Maybe something came up with his family or maybe he displaced his phone. I’m sure that everything will be fine,” Arthur assured.

“Arthur, you don’t know him like I do. If he was busy he would have found the time to tell me. You can’t stop me from being worried about him. I’m not going to stop until I hear from him again,” Alistair mumbled.

“Well, if you’re so confident that something is wrong, why don’t you just take the train to go see him? If something really has happened, then you’ll find out right away. And if it turns out there was nothing at all, you’ll just look like an utter ass,” Arthur suggested. 

Alistair lifted his head out of his hands and looked at Arthur for a moment, his visage clouded with deep thought. Finally, he nodded, giving a sight grunt before standing up from the couch and grabbing his cell phone off the coffee table. Arthur watched him curiously. 

“Now where are you going?” he inquired.

“To pack a small bag. I’m going to take your advice and take the train to go see him,” Alistair replied.

Arthur sighed softly. “Whatever makes you feel better…” he murmured. 

“If nothing is wrong then I’m sure I won’t be gone for long. I just need to make sure that he is okay,” Alistair said.

Arthur waved his hand dismissively. “Yes, yes, I understand. Just keep me posted, alright? I want to know what’s happening. I want to know what’s going on,” he said.

“I’ll keep you posted, Arthur. I promise,” Alistair said. With that, he left the living room and went to his bedroom instead. 

Alistair shut the door and tossed his cell phone onto his bed. He ran a hand through his hair again before going into his closet and pulling out a small suitcase and some clothes, among other little things, that he would need for travelling. He hoped against hope that he wouldn’t be gone for very long, but nonetheless, he packed enough to get him through about a week if needed. After all, who knew what was really going on, or how much Alistair could become involved with whatever it was?

All that Alistair really knew at the moment was that the last thing that Francis, his boyfriend, had texted him was a message simply saying “goodnight”, and that was three nights ago. For four mornings, Alistair had texted Francis “Good morning, sunshine”, but had never received a reply. Every night, Alistair would text him “Goodnight, starshine”, but they had never even been read. There were other texts here and there that Alistair sent, trying to get _anything_ out of Francis, but it was in vain.

Alistair had tried calling him. He had sent emails. He had checked all of Francis’ social media, but he had not been online since the last day that Alistair had heard from him. Obviously, something was wrong, but Alistair really had no way of finding out what it was. Well, not until now, at least. Lord only knows how long it would have taken Alistair to figure out that he could go visit Francis if Arthur hadn’t been there to tell him. 

It took all of fifteen minutes for Alistair to pack everything that he needed. Now all that was left to do was buy tickets for the next train to France, and then he could leave. He stuffed his cell phone into his pocket and grabbed the handle of the suitcase, opting to pick it up and carry it instead of rolling it out of the room. He left the bedroom and went back out into the living room, where Arthur was no longer present. 

“Arthur? Where’ve you got to?” Alistair called out, leaving his suitcase in the middle of the living room and walking over to the desktop computer that Alistair and Arthur had on a large desk in the corner of said living room. 

“In the kitchen, Al,” Arthur called back from the next room.

“Y’think you could drive me down to the train station after I buy my tickets?” Alistair asked, sitting down at the desk and waking the computer up. 

“Well I suppose so, but only if you can wait until after I’ve had my tea,” Arthur answered.

“Sure. Can you make me some, too?” Alistair asked.

“Of course,” Arthur replied.

“Thanks,” Alistair said, and quickly opened an internet browser so that he could by his train ticket.

By the time Arthur had brought the tea out to the living room, Alistair had bought his ticket. It was printing out as Arthur walked by to get to the coffee table. Alistair stood up from his chair and followed Arthur. He’d grab his ticket after he had finished his tea. 

Alistair was certainly in a hurry to get going, but he knew that having a swollen tongue would be detrimental to any conversations that Alistair might be having with Francis later. He had to wait for the tea to cool off enough that it wouldn’t burn his tongue before he tried to drink it. He had a few minutes to just sit back and relax while the tea cooled down. 

Arthur and Alistair said nothing to each other as the both waited for their tea to cool down, and still said nothing to each other when they were finally able to drink. Alistair seemed to wolf his tea down in a single gulp, but of course, Arthur was so much more refined than that. Despite the hurry that he knew his brother was in, he had no intention of choking on his tea while trying to drink it down all at once. It didn’t matter much, though. The extra time that Arthur spent with his drink gave Alistair enough time to bring his cup to the kitchen, set it down in the sink, and then grab his ticket off of the printer. 

“Hurry up, Arthur. I don’t have all day,” Alistair said impatiently as he snatched his ticket up off of the printer and walked back over to his suitcase. 

“I’m going, I’m going, Alistair. Can’t you afford a _little_ patience?” Arthur inquired, taking one last sip of his tea and standing up from the couch.

“Maybe a little, but not much,” Alistair replied, running a hand through his hair again.

“Relax, Alistair. Everything is going to be fine,” Arthur assured, and walked to the kitchen to put his cup into the sink. 

Alistair shoved his ticket into his back pocket and picked up his suitcase again. He tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Arthur to finish rinsing out both his own cup and Alistair’s cup and to come back into the living room. Alistair heard Arthur’s car keys jangling as he picked them up from the kitchen counter and finally walked back into the living room.

“Ready to go?” he asked, walking over to Alistair and standing beside him.

“Thought you’d never ask,” Alistair replied, smirking faintly as he turned to walk to the front door. 

Despite his hands being full of suitcase, Alistair managed to open the door without Arthur’s help. He walked outside and quickly walked to the driveway, not looking behind to see if Arthur was keeping up. “Open the boot for me, will you?” he called out, making his way to the back of the car.

“Sure thing,” Arthur said, pressing the button on his remote to unlock the car and meeting Alistair at the back.

He opened up the trunk and stood back as Alistair put his suitcase into it and then shut it on his own. Arthur walked back to the front of the car and got into the driver’s seat. Alistair walked to the other side and got into the passenger’s seat. 

Arthur started the car up as soon as Alistair had shut his door. Alistair buckled his seatbelt as Arthur pulled out of the driveway, and watched as Arthur buckled his own seatbelt while driving down the road, out of the neighborhood. Arthur turned the radio on, and he and Alistair listened to the music in silence as they drove to the train station.

The station was about an hour away from Arthur and Alistair’s house. When they were close to it, Arthur parked somewhere outside of it and gripped the key that was still in the ignition, preparing to take it out, but not doing so just yet. “Do you want me to walk to the station with you?” he asked.

“No, it’s alright. It’ll be quicker if I do it by myself,” Alistair said, grabbing the door handle and opening the door. 

“Alright, if you’re sure…” Arthur muttered.

“Positive,” Alistair said, unbuckling his seatbelt.

“Call me or text me when you get to France, and let me know what you find out about Francis, alright?” Arthur requested.

“Will do,” Alistair said, getting out of the car.

“Be safe. Love you,” Arthur told him.

“I will. Love you too,” Alistair said, and closed the door of the car.

Alistair walked to the back of the car and opened the trunk to get his suitcase out. He set it down on the ground so he could close the trunk, and picked it up again once the trunk was closed. He carried it to the sidewalk and nodded at Arthur as he walked by the windshield and came into Arthur’s view. Arthur nodded back at him before backing the car out of the parking space and driving away.

Alistair wasted no time in trying to get through security as quickly as possible and getting to his train. He found his seat easily, and stored his suitcase away in the compartment above it. He showed his ticket to the conductor when he came by. He sat back in his seat and looked out the window, watching the scenery pass by for the entirety of the ride. 

Under normal circumstances, Alistair would wait until everyone else in his train car had gotten up and left before he tried to leave, just to be courteous to everyone else, but he was not in a courteous mood today. In fact, after he had gathered his suitcase again, he was pushing past people just to get out of the door. He felt bad for it, of course, and even worse when he heard people swearing at him and calling him rude under their breath, but he had no time to worry about that. He just had to see Francis. 

When he was off the train he made his way through the train station until he could find a place to put his suitcase down away from the hustle and bustle of everyone else so that he could call Arthur. He didn’t have to worry about calling a cab, since there were always cabs driving around the train station anyways. He’d just grab one on his way out, after he had talked to Arthur. 

“Hey, are you off the train?” Arthur asked when he answered the phone after Alistair had called him.

“Yep. ‘Bout to get a cab going to Francis’ place,” Alistair replied. 

“Still haven’t heard anything from him?” Arthur asked.

“Nope, nothing,” Alistair said.

Arthur sighed faintly. “Well, hurry and get to his place then. I’m sure you’ll have everything sorted out soon enough. Just let me know how things are going whenever you can, alright?” he requested.

“Sure thing. I’ll talk to you later,” Alistair said. 

“Yeah, I’ll talk to you later,” Arthur said, and Alistair hung up. 

Alistair put his phone back into his pocket and picked up his suitcase again. He hurried out of the train station and hailed a cab when he was outside. He didn’t bother to put his suitcase in the trunk; he just carried it in the backseat with him. 

Francis’ apartment was only twenty minutes from the train station. He lived in the city because he enjoyed the hustle and bustle of it all. He had always told Alistair that it was hard to sleep without the noise, and the lights streaming in through his bedroom window. 

The drive from the station to Francis’ apartment building was smooth. When the cab driver parked in front of the building, Alistair already had the money in his hands to pay the driver so that he could get out of the car quickly. He handed the money to the driver before unbuckling his seatbelt, opening the door, carrying his suitcase out of the cab, and shutting the door behind him. The cab driver began to drive away as soon as Alistair was on the sidewalk. 

Alistair carried his suitcase into the building. He carried it into the elevator. All the way up to the top floor, where Francis’ penthouse apartment was. There was a security system in the building; normally, people who didn’t live there would have to be buzzed in by whoever they were trying to visit, but the doorman knew Alistair well enough to know that if he didn’t ask Francis to let him in, it was because Alistair was trying to surprise him. The doorman would always let Alistair in, and Alistair was grateful for that now more than ever before. 

Alistair couldn’t help but sigh and tap his foot impatiently as he waited for the elevator to take him to the desired floor. When the elevator doors finally opened, Alistair rushed out of them and into the hallway, bounding down the hallway until he reached Francis’ door. He dropped his suitcase and and knocked on the door eagerly. 

There was no answer the first time. Alistair’s heart started beating a little faster. He tried to calm himself down. Maybe Francis just hadn’t heard the knocking. Maybe he was in the shower or something. Everything was going to be fine. 

He knocked again. It was louder this time. There was still no answer. Alistair’s anxiety skyrocketed. 

“Francis! Please, open the door. The doorman would have told me if you weren’t home, I know you’re there,” Alistair called out, knocking on the door once more. 

“Francis come on, it’s not fair to put me off like this. I’m worried about you. I just want to make sure you’re okay. Please let me in. Please?” 

Alistair stopped knocking. All was silent as he stood outside of Francis’ door, waiting, hoping. It was five minutes, and Alistair had all but died on the inside before Francis finally came to the door and opened it.

“Oh, thank God,” Alistair muttered, throwing his arms around Francis and pulling him into an immensely tight hug without even so much as glancing at him. 

Slowly, Francis wrapped his arms around Alistair’s waist and hugged him back. He buried his face in Alistair’s neck, peppering it with a few gentle kisses as Alistair ran his fingers through Francis’ hair. Alistair kissed Francis’ forehead lovingly before pushing him away a little, just to get a good look at him.

“Francis, what’s going on…? Why haven’t you been talking to me lately? Are you okay?” Alistair asked. 

“I… I-I don’t know… I-I’m sorry… I-I know that you would worry but I didn’t mean to make you upset… I-I just needed some time to think, I-I…” 

Francis had begun to shake as he was speaking, so much so that Alistair could notice it without having to pay close attention to it. His voice was shaky as well. He sounded as if he were close to tears. Alistair frowned deeply.

“Can I come inside, Sunshine? Can we talk?” he asked softly.

Francis simply nodded and stepped aside so that Alistair could get into the apartment. 

Alistair picked up his suitcase again, but dropped it as soon as he was inside the apartment. He shut the door behind him and walked over to the couch in the main room. He sat down and patted the seat next to him, urging Francis to come sit next to him.

Francis ran a hand through his hair before walking over to the couch and sitting down next to Alistair. Alistair wrapped an arm around Francis’ shoulder and held him close, rubbing circles into Francis’ shoulder to calm him down. Francis sighed softly and leaned into Alistair’s embrace. 

“Francis, please… Talk to me… Tell me what’s going on…” Alistair whispered. 

“I-I don’t know what’s going on Alistair, I… I just don’t feel like myself lately… I don’t feel… Happy…” Francis muttered. 

“What do you mean, Sunshine…?” Alistair asked, and kissed Francis’ hair gently.

Francis laughed softly, forcing a smile that looked so miserable. “I wish I knew, Alistair. I wish I knew what I meant.”

“Francis, you know better than anyone that there is always a source to these problems. Even if you don’t know what it is off the top of your head there has to be a reason that you are feeling unhappy. Please try to break things down so you can tell me what’s wrong. You know I just want to help you,” Alistair said. 

Francis sighed heavily. “I don’t know… I mean… I-I know this is ridiculous because I know that I am loved and that people care about me, but I just don’t feel like it’s true… Or that it will last for very long even if it is…” he admitted. 

Alistair raised an eyebrow. “Why is that, Sunshine?” he inquired.

Francis shrugged. “Somehow I just feel like everyone around me, all of my friends and family and the people I love… I just feel like I am a burden to them. I feel like everyone sticks around out of pity for me. I feel like none of them will be around forever and that they will eventually get sick of me and just leave because I have too many problems for them to handle. And because of that I’ve started to isolate myself so that it will be easier for them to leave and so that maybe I won’t miss them as much when they do. It’s ridiculous and selfish and I know it’s not true but it’s all I can think about lately and I just… I don’t know what to do about it…” 

Alistair pursed his lips into a thin line and pulled Francis into his lap. He wrapped his arms around Francis’ waist and held him close, resting his chin on Francis’ shoulder. “Francis, you should also know better than anyone that isolating yourself won’t help anything. It will only make things worse,” he muttered.

Francis looked at the floor. “I know…”

“You know that talking to people is what makes you feel better. You know that asking people for help is always the best answer. None of your friends will be upset with you because of it and if they do get upset then they aren’t your friends. You know you can always talk to me about anything. I’m your boyfriend and I love you. Don’t you know that?” Alistair asked. 

Francis nodded. “I know.”

“Besides, I came all the way here just to see you because I thought that something was wrong and I was worried about you. Doesn’t that prove that I care about you? Doesn’t that prove that you are loved?” Alistair asked.

“I suppose…” Francis muttered. 

“Listen to me, I’m going to stay here with you until you’re feeling better, alright? Anytime you need to talk about something we’ll sit down together and talk about it. I’ll cook for you and clean for you and you can just take it easy for a while until you get your spirits back up. It’s going to be all about you for as long as I’m staying here, alright?” Alistair suggested.

“Oh, Alistair, you don’t have to-”

“Hush,” Alistair said, pressing a finger to Francis’ lips gently. “I want to. Because I love you. I want to make you feel better.”

Francis smiled softly. “If you insist…” he said.

“I do,” Alistair replied.

Francis’ smile grew wider, and he leaned his head back to kiss Alistair’s chin. Alistair hummed softly before leaning in to kiss Francis’ lips lovingly. Francis giggled softly and kissed him back just as lovingly. 

“Don’t hide things like this from me anymore, okay? It doesn’t take four days without contact with me to get me to come over here. You can just ask me and I’ll be here. I'm only a trainride away,” Alistair promised.

Francis nodded subtly. “I love you, Alistair. Thank you for being here for me,” he said.

“Of course, Francis,” Alistair said, kissing Francis’ hair once again. “I will always be here for you. I will always love you. I promise.” 

“You promise…” Francis whispered, not as a question, but a statement, just to reassure himself.

“I promise.”


End file.
